1. Field of Invention
Fire protection of tensioner systems for marine risers in oil and gas offshore drilling and production rigs.
2. Related Applications
U.S. application Ser. No. 07/695,296 filed May 3, 1991 by John D. Koos and Alan E. Ester entitled "Passive Fire Protection System for Articulating Joints and Flexible Connections" and U.S. application Ser. No. 07/767,025 filed Sep. 27, 1991 by Bryan V. Butler and John D. Koos entitled "Passive Fire Protection System for Marine Risers".
The Koos & Ester application disclosed and claimed a fire protection system for articulating joints and flexible connections of a marine riser system.
In this system, the articulating joints, flexible connections and tensioner ring are fire and flame protected, respectively, by covers or jackets comprising an inner multi-layer composite blanket of ceramic fibrous materials and barrier films contained within inner and outer layers of woven ceramic fibers for reinforcement and abrasion resistance and the other exposed uncovered parts of the system were provided with a coating of intumescent epoxy for fire and flame protection. Also disclosed were accordian pleated jackets to protect the cylinder rods of the pneumatic-hydraulic tensioner cylinders while the tensioner cylinders themselves were protected with a coating of intumescent epoxy. The accordian pleating of the jackets accomodated the expansion and retraction of the cylinder rods due to wave motion on the offshore oil and gas rigs.
The Butler and Koos application disclosed and claimed a fire protection for adjustable top joints and other risers with standardized prefabricated jackets which comprise an inner multi-layer composite blanket of ceramic fibrous material and barrier film contained within inner and outer layers of woven ceramic fibers for reinforcement and abrasion resistance. These jackets were essentially equal in length and nested within adjacently positioned jackets. The number of jackets to be used depended upon the length of the item being protected.
The purpose of this invention is to provide fire protection of the cylinder rods of the pneumatic-hydraulic tensioner cylinders in a marine riser tensioner system of an offshore oil and gas rig.
More specifically, it is the purpose of this invention to provide an improved alternative to the pleated jackets of the Koos and Ester application for the protection of the cylinder rod of the pneumatic-hydraulic tensioner cylinders in a marine riser tensioner system of an offshore oil and gas rig.